Post by petrolino on Jun 17, 2017 22:35:28 GMT
'night, Mother' is a play written by Marsha Norman who was born on September 21st, 1947 in Louisville, Kentucky. Norman broke through with her play 'Getting Out' in 1977, launching the production that propelled Pamela Reed to stardom. 'night Mother' won the 1983 Pulitzer Prize for Drama and was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Play. The director of the play, Tom Moore, was known to horror fans for 'The Legend Of Boggy Creek' (1977). Norman expanded the play for Moore to make a screen version in 1986.
The simple premise of 'night Mother' sees Jessie Cates (Sissy Spacek) explaining to her mother Thelma (Anne Bancroft) that she's suicidal. Jessie has epilepsy and experiences trouble dealing with relationships and human interaction. The original play starred Kathy Bates as Jessie and Anne Pitoniak as Thelma.
Sissy Spacek received one of her six Oscar nominations this same year for 'Crimes Of The Heart' (1986) which was also adapted from a play. Playwright Beth Henley was born on May 8th, 1952 in Jackson, Mississippi. Having completed the play in 1978, she submitted it to several regional theatres without success. It then got picked up by the Actors Theater Of Louisville. The play was first performed in February 1979 in Louisville, Kentucky. In the same year that Bates lost her role in 'night Mother' to Spacek, she lost her role in 'Crimes Of The Heart' to Diane Keaton (she'd later lose her role in Terence McNally's 'Frankie And Johnny In The Clair De Lune' to Michelle Pfeiffer).
The filmisation of 'night Mother' demands a degree of patience but there's a powerful play at its core that's delivered by a pair of powerhouse players. The haunting musical theme is composed by David Shire. I saw this movie during my school years and it's stuck with me ever since. I'd like to see Robert Altman's television movie that was screened the previous year, 'The Laundromat' (1985), which is also based on a play by Marsha Norman. I highly recommend 'night Mother'.
The simple premise of 'night Mother' sees Jessie Cates (Sissy Spacek) explaining to her mother Thelma (Anne Bancroft) that she's suicidal. Jessie has epilepsy and experiences trouble dealing with relationships and human interaction. The original play starred Kathy Bates as Jessie and Anne Pitoniak as Thelma.
Joan Crawford & Anne Bancroft
Sissy Spacek received one of her six Oscar nominations this same year for 'Crimes Of The Heart' (1986) which was also adapted from a play. Playwright Beth Henley was born on May 8th, 1952 in Jackson, Mississippi. Having completed the play in 1978, she submitted it to several regional theatres without success. It then got picked up by the Actors Theater Of Louisville. The play was first performed in February 1979 in Louisville, Kentucky. In the same year that Bates lost her role in 'night Mother' to Spacek, she lost her role in 'Crimes Of The Heart' to Diane Keaton (she'd later lose her role in Terence McNally's 'Frankie And Johnny In The Clair De Lune' to Michelle Pfeiffer).
Sissy Spacek :
The filmisation of 'night Mother' demands a degree of patience but there's a powerful play at its core that's delivered by a pair of powerhouse players. The haunting musical theme is composed by David Shire. I saw this movie during my school years and it's stuck with me ever since. I'd like to see Robert Altman's television movie that was screened the previous year, 'The Laundromat' (1985), which is also based on a play by Marsha Norman. I highly recommend 'night Mother'.